Letter to the Editor: Transgender service ban

As the Pastor of Christ Congregation, an Open and Affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ and American Baptist Church — and as a friend and family member to many who have served in the military — I emphatically denounce the White House’s most recent policy denying transgender people the privilege and right to serve in our nation’s military.

Scripture says this: “So God created humankind in God’s image, in the image of God, God created them; male and female, God created them.”

If, like me, you believe all humans were created in the image of God, then we can assume that God’s existence does not conform to binary definitions of gender. Either God has no gender or God is all genders at once, meaning God is above-gender. In other words, God is transgender.

Indeed, I would stake the claim that our transgender family and our gender-fluid neighbors bear a particularly strong expression of God here on earth.

So, Beloved Bearers of God’s Image, while the U.S. military might deny you the privilege to serve, we offer you our congregation as a community where you can serve the world. If you are feeling unsafe, we offer our church as a sanctuary. If you are overwhelmed by ignorant bigotry, we offer our faith that you are eternally and unconditionally loved just as you are, because we believe God made you to be you.